Wow.You have managed to cover every issue affecting Manchester barring global warming and the waning fortunes of certain local football clubs in just one issue! From poor housing to police malaise to national infrastructure as well as foodie and other culture. Well done the famous "4.5" journalists! I just wish that the national press grabbed my attention inthe same way but sadly it doesn't.
I think that I understand the benefits of HS2 coming to Manchester, but if the current franchise holder (and it appears they have just been awarded a significant extension) sorts out their employee issues, then we would already have a reasonably quick and frequent rail link to London. My problem with the focus on HS2 is that it doesn’t necessarily solve the problem with train travel in the north. I live in Bury and I have regularly commuted east to Bradford and Leeds on the train over the past few years, this is not an enjoyable journey. I have the choice of spending an hour to get into Manchester to get the “fast” train to Leeds or 25 minutes driving to Rochdale to get the “slow” train. Either way it takes me the best part of 2 hours to get the 40 miles to Leeds by train.
I would much prefer infrastructure money being spent on a West to East express service linking Liverpool to Hull via Manchester, Bradford, and Leeds.
To my simple brain linking the major northern cities creates a Northern Powerhouse to rival London, rather than turning Manchester into a commutable suburb of London.
I admit I am an opponent of HS2, and have been so ever since I saw that their planned Manchester extension would destroy a well-known and protected urban fox den off Bennett Street, as well as not doing a great deal to reduce the length of time travel between Manchester and London would take. What we need is to improve the existing routes and add more capacity if possible, not to completely wreck the surrounding countryside and the greener parts of our mid-to-inner city to cut 20 minutes off commutes.
The countless tens or hundreds of millions wasted as a result of the toing and froing related to HS2 beggars belief. Lack of certainty about delivery of phase 2a and 2b means that we'll be stuck with fudged sub optimal regional timetables for the foreseeable. It also torpedos the remaining business case for the bit of line already being built. What a mess.
Wow.You have managed to cover every issue affecting Manchester barring global warming and the waning fortunes of certain local football clubs in just one issue! From poor housing to police malaise to national infrastructure as well as foodie and other culture. Well done the famous "4.5" journalists! I just wish that the national press grabbed my attention inthe same way but sadly it doesn't.
Sacha Lord. The more I hear, the less I believe.
I think that I understand the benefits of HS2 coming to Manchester, but if the current franchise holder (and it appears they have just been awarded a significant extension) sorts out their employee issues, then we would already have a reasonably quick and frequent rail link to London. My problem with the focus on HS2 is that it doesn’t necessarily solve the problem with train travel in the north. I live in Bury and I have regularly commuted east to Bradford and Leeds on the train over the past few years, this is not an enjoyable journey. I have the choice of spending an hour to get into Manchester to get the “fast” train to Leeds or 25 minutes driving to Rochdale to get the “slow” train. Either way it takes me the best part of 2 hours to get the 40 miles to Leeds by train.
I would much prefer infrastructure money being spent on a West to East express service linking Liverpool to Hull via Manchester, Bradford, and Leeds.
To my simple brain linking the major northern cities creates a Northern Powerhouse to rival London, rather than turning Manchester into a commutable suburb of London.
I completely agree.
You won't believe which rail provider has just had its contract renewed!
Saw that. Awful news.
I admit I am an opponent of HS2, and have been so ever since I saw that their planned Manchester extension would destroy a well-known and protected urban fox den off Bennett Street, as well as not doing a great deal to reduce the length of time travel between Manchester and London would take. What we need is to improve the existing routes and add more capacity if possible, not to completely wreck the surrounding countryside and the greener parts of our mid-to-inner city to cut 20 minutes off commutes.
The countless tens or hundreds of millions wasted as a result of the toing and froing related to HS2 beggars belief. Lack of certainty about delivery of phase 2a and 2b means that we'll be stuck with fudged sub optimal regional timetables for the foreseeable. It also torpedos the remaining business case for the bit of line already being built. What a mess.
the FT article about housing is subscriber only, sadly (not that i have an issue with that - good luck to them).